Filed under: Random Swellness
So this blog post is many, many, many months overdue. One goal for this year is to be more organized and on top of things, and to kick that off, I’m crossing things off of my to-do list that just need to get done, finally.
Back in the early summer (late spring? Yikes, this is way overdue!), I was invited to learn about and try the Samsung Galaxy S4. The focus was on the way the S4 can improve your health by using apps like Map My Run/Ride, Strava, Fitness Buddy, Office Yoga and Nike+ Training Club (I’ve been using this btw the past few weeks to supplement my running with some overall conditioning and strength training). It also has a built-in S Health software where you can keep a food and exercise diary and a sleep monitor.
These apps are great–but you can essentially use these apps on just about any smartphone, right? So now that I’ve had a chance to test it out for many months here are a few things I like about it:
- the large five-inch screen size
- it’s lightweight
- it supports HSPA+42 Mbps and 4G LTE — so this means that wherever you are in the world, you can rely on “perfect connectivity” (their wording); I can attest to the fact that when I’ve been traveling with it in Europe and in the Caribbean, I have been able to connect to wifi on my S4 and not with my iPhone 4 (and people I’ve been traveling with have been unable to connect to wifi with whatever their devices were — when you’re the only one with wifi, you sure get some jealousy directed at you, haha!)
But my most favourite things about this phone?
The full HD Super AMOLED display, 441 ppi and the 13 megapixel rear camera — the photos it takes are phenomenal. I have been at concerts and have had people behind me at the show full-on freaking out at how good my photos are compared to the blurry blobs whens napped on their phones.
Here is a little comparison for you, here is a photo snapped with my iPhone 4 at the Package Tour (hello, NKOTB, 98 Degrees and Boyz II Men, what!) last year:
And here is a photo snapped at this amazing concert with my Samsung Galaxy S4:
(yes, it’s a bit blurry, but I have a feeling that’s because I was excited at the concert and unable to hold the phone steady 🙂 You can at least make out which one’s Jordan. That’s what matters, right?)
Sure, there are a handful of things I’m not fond of when it comes to this phone:
- I can’t easily copy and paste direct messages (I discovered this when I was campaigning for the Inner Champion contest and contacting just about everyone I’d ever met).
- I can’t seem to search for older emails, and I haven’t figured out why this is (I’m often on my way to a media event and need to check the address, and on the S4 I’ve been unable to locate emails).
But come on now, those factors are small potatoes when you can take boyband photos that are as good as this, amirite?
January 16, 2014
Happy new year, my pretties!
On this first day of 2014, I’m sitting here typing this post when it seems like just a few days ago that I was summing up 2012. Can 2013 really have flown by as quickly as it did? Looking back, this year was some kind of wonderful:
- Every race I ran in 2013 was a personal best. Three marathons completed this year, each one faster than the last (the most recent was in November in Philadelphia. And my Around the Bay 30k was faster then the time goal I’d set for myself). I’m pretty sure it’s only a matter of time until I place in my age category…kidding! I wish!
- Even more close to my heart than the personal bests that I ran was the support I received from everyone who voted for me in the Inner Champion contest I took part in. I think about your support during my long runs and it helps motivate me to keep going. And going. And going. (A marathon is long, yo!)
- I received several notes from blog readers and friends telling me how something I’ve posted has inspired them — whether it was to work out that day, or to try a great local restaurant, or to make a meal from scratch — and as sheepish I often feel (over) sharing about my running or traveling, knowing I may have played a small part in making your life a little more swell, well, that makes it all worth it.
- I had the opportunity to partner with some fantastic brands, such as Aveeno Active Naturals, Ford Canada and Shoppers Drug Mart.
- My one travel goal for 2013 was very, very simple. All I wanted to do was make it to New York City as it’d been much too long since my last visit. I made it to the Big Apple three times (twice for work and once on vacation — where I not only saw Kanye West in concert in Brooklyn, but my Instagram of Anna Wintour and Grace Coddington at the show made it onto The Cut, Jezebel and Fashionista).
- I was fortunate enough to explore more places than I ever had in a year. From the stunningly gorgeous Sonora Resort in British Columbia and the sunny beaches of Anguilla, Jamaica, Barbados, and Mexico to the cultural sights in Paris, Madrid, and Nice and the unexpected fun times in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Door County, Wisconsin and Roanoke, Virginia — to name just a few — I had a wealth of opportunities to absorb and learn from. And I hope through my sharing of this travel, that it has inspired you to explore — whether it’s somewhere far flung or even if it’s just to the other end of the city. Explore, try new things!
- I’ve made so many wonderful friends, ones I know I will stay in touch with, even if we can only manage to connect through Instagram or Twitter rather than in real life. (And my old friends, for the past few years, I realize more and more each year how important you are in my life and I hope you know what your support means to me.)
So yes, I’d say this past year pretty great. At the same time, in writing an article for Glow about how big a fan I am of using social media, I became more aware of how it both benefits and detracts from my happiness. Writing the article helped me get my FOMO in check, but it’s also made me aware of the shiny, happy edited self most of us (present company included) present on social media. Has it been a year without any stress, anger, guilt, resentment or sadness? Of course not. But I think it’s important to try to keep things positive, and let’s face it, it’s easier. Cut me some slack — I’m not about to Instagram a makeup-less selfie in my PJs in front of my computer or tweet about my life falling apart.
Not that my life has fallen apart, knock on wood. More than anything, 2013 for me was a year I felt incredibly grateful. I had more than a few moments where I thought “Is this really my life?” before soaking up the surreal experience at hand (like when I had dozens and dozens of eagles soaring above me while out on the water at Sonora Resort). Moments that I felt quite lucky for, but I came to eventually accept that the moments were a result of a combination of both good fortune and my efforts. I helped make these moments happen.
So for 2014, I ask you to think of it as your year. But don’t leave it to fate. Make it happen. Take the steps you need to to bring you closer to your goal.
Do it, and it’ll be a fantastic year. I can just feel it.
January 1, 2014
*This giveaway is now closed.*
Congrats to Marla P.! You win the Nestle pregnancy essentials prize!
Expecting a warm little bundle of joy? Or maybe you have a girlfriend expecting who could use a lovely basket of pregnancy must-haves? Well, I’ve got a lovely basket of pregnancy essentials from Nestle that would make a fabulous gift for any mama-to-be to give away to one lucky winner.
The prize includes Nestle Materna prenatal vitamins to help nourish expecting moms with folic acid to help prevent neural tube defects when taken daily prior to becoming pregnant and during early pregnancy, and with 22 other essential vitamins and minerals they and their baby need through pregnancy and nursing.
Besides the two bottles of Nestle Materna vitamins, the prize (valued at over $150) also includes:
- a LeSportSac bag
- Bath & Body Works Super Rich Body Cream Spa
- Bath & Body Works Warm Vanilla Sugar Bubble Bath
- BellaBand
- Peppermint tea
- Preggie Pop Drops
The giveaway is open to Canadian residents. And you can enter each of the following four ways:
1. Email me at healthandswellness@gmail.com with your name and mailing address. Please put “Nestle Pregnancy Essentials” in the email’s subject line.
2. Follow me on Twitter (@healthswellness) and tweet:
So @healthswellness is giving away a Nestle #Pregnancy Essentials kit! Here’s how you can enter. http://bit.ly/1hNVbEj
3. Follow me on Instagram (@healthandswellness) and comment on my Instagram photo for this giveaway by naming a celebrity mom whose style you admire.
4. Like the Health and Swellness Facebook page, and comment on my post about this giveaway by sharing a favourite baby name.
One winner will be chosen at random. If the winner cannot be reached within five days of being contacted, another winner will be selected.
The contest ends at 11:59PM on Wednesday, December 19, 2013.
Good luck!
(Photos: Jessica Alba, Just Jared; Katie Holmes, UsMagazine)
December 12, 2013
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